From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Responding to Israeli recognition of Armenian genocide, Yerevan knocks Israel for ‘weaponizing’ the issue
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleNava Freiberg is The Times of Israel's deputy diplomatic correspondent.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemns Israel’s recognition of the Armenian genocide, accusing Jerusalem of using the issue to deflect attention from the war with Hamas in Gaza.
“We pay no heed to the slanders directed at our country by the murder network that has the blood of 75,000 innocent people in Gaza, mostly children and women, on its hands,” Erdogan says in remarks to the media following a cabinet meeting in Ankara, according to the state‑run Anadolu news agency.
Erdogan pointed to refuge he says Turkey provided to people fleeing Nazi persecution during World War II, saying, “those who slander Turkey to cover up their barbarity in Gaza know it best.”
Yesterday, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan responded coldly to Israel’s recognition, telling reporters that he sees “no need” to comment on it as he wanted to avoid “weaponization” of the genocide, according to Armenian state news agency Armenpress.
“We see no need to respond because we believe that refraining from entering into the issue of the weaponization of the Armenian Genocide is in the interests of the Republic of Armenia,” Pashinyan said.
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